Primary choice for most pupils on
National Offers Day

Nearly nine in ten children in Calderdale got a place at their first choice primary school.

In a so-called “National Offer Day”, youngsters across the country learned their fate on the same day for the first time.

And, the majority of the 2,678 applicants were left happy, with 2,313 (86.4 per cent) getting their first choice place.

However in the “not so happy camp” were the 157 children (5.9 per cent) who got their second preference, the 49 (1.8 per cent) who got their third, the 28 ( 1 per cent) got their fourth and the ten (0.4 per cent) who got their fifth.

Meanwhile, a further 121 applicants (4.5 per cent) were directed (assigned to a school they didn’t pick).

Calderdale Council’s Director of Children and Young People’s Services, Stuart Smith, said: “I’m delighted that over 86 per cent of applicants were offered their preferred school, it represents the hard work of the school admissions team.

“Compared to this time last year we have had over 200 more applications for places within Calderdale primary schools.

“This rise in places required has been addressed, most notably by providing two new forms of entry at Halifax High and at Saville Park at Heath.

“We’ve been working hard to get the best out of the available resources, and these provisions will create more capacity to ensure we continue to create a great environment for learning.”

It had been suggested nationally that tens of thousands of four-year-olds could miss out on their first-choice place this year, with predictions that up to one in three would lose out in some areas, particularly in major cities that were facing a shortage of places.

l Did your child get the school place they wanted? Email us: hbtimes@hebdenbridgetimes.co.uk or todnews@todmordennews.co.uk